The game of Tic-Tac-Toe is well known to all game players. Tic-Tac-Toe is called "Naughts & Crosses" in England, "Luk Tust K'i" in China, and "Achi" in Africa and has been played for thousands of years. The oldest board for playing the game was found in the ancient Egyptian Temple of Kurna dating from 1400 B.C.
The game of Tic-Tac-Toe has wide appeal since it is easily learned and quickly played without complicated rules or apparatus. Unfortunately, a game of Tic-Tac-Toe often ends in a tie when the two players fill the available squares of the playing surface before one player has achieved a winning configuration. The tendency of the Tic-Tac-Toe game to end in a tie removes some of the excitement from the game and causes the game to be less than satisfying.
It would therefore be desirable to devise a game which combines the ease of play of Tic-Tac-Toe without the drawback of a game which often ends in a tie.